How do you define the Oregon-Oregon State rivalry? You can’t, but if you tried it would be something like: A pure hatred stinging so bad that Oregon fans’ faces turn red when thinking about last year’s embarrassing loss.
Forget the records. Oregon (9-1 overall, 6-1 Pacific-10 Conference) won’t take Oregon State (5-5, 3-4) lightly.
The Beavers will be playing without starting quarterback Matt Moore and face one of the most intimidating and hostile crowds Saturday at Autzen Stadium.
Moore will be sidelined the rest of the season following a knee injury during Saturday’s home loss to Stanford, forcing reserve quarterback Ryan Gunderson into action from the start.
“I think it’s just got be a very efficient game,” Oregon State coach Mike Riley said of Gunderson. “Make the right reads, get the ball out of his hands, handle the management of the game. Noise will be a factor. Poise, efficiency – Those will be big words as we head into this game for him.”
Oregon knows what it is like to play after losing a key starting quarterback. The Ducks have won the past two games with a duo of signal callers, sophomores Dennis Dixon and Brady Leaf, filling in for the injured Kellen Clemens. No matter who is starting the game, Oregon defensive end Devan Long understands his role.
“A quarterback is a quarterback. He’s gonna throw the ball to the receivers,” Long said. “My job is to get after him and tackle him, get pressure on him and disrupt his rhythm, basically.”
Long also realizes that Oregon State will most likely come out fired up and willing to compensate for an untested quarterback. After all, that is what he and the Oregon defense have had to do late in the season.
“Our quarterback went down and everybody thought we were going to lose, but our guys stepped up,” Long said. “People are probably counting them out, but they are going to come out just as hard as they ever would.
“It’s the Civil War. You can throw our records out the door. You can throw the history of the Civil War out. This game is going to be huge. They are going to come out to play, and we are going to show up too.”
Especially on the Ducks’ minds will be last season’s 50-21 thumping by the Beavers. Not only did the loss knock Oregon from bowl
contention, it sent last year’s seniors away from the program embittered. The Ducks are focused on not repeating that.
“It means a lot to the seniors,” Leaf said. “The rivalry is a big game for everybody in this state.”
The stakes are nearly the same for Oregon State as they were last season: Win to get a shot at a bowl game, lose to spend the holidays at home.
“They are going home if they lose,” Leaf said. “They’ve got a lot riding on it. They are going to bring their best game so we’ve just got to do the same.”
Traditionally, the home team has the edge, with each coming out on top in the last eight games against each other. The last time a road team came away with a victory was Oregon in 1996. The Ducks left Corvallis with a 49-13 win that year.
No matter where the game is played or what each team’s record is, one thing remains constant: This game is about pride, and the team that wins Saturday is the team that can show its face for the next year.
“It’s about the right to hold your head up in the state,” Oregon coach Mike Bellotti said.
